Wednesday, December 08, 2010

Urban Meyer Resigns From Florida Gators

Urban Meyer Resigns From Florida Gators - When Urban Meyer "retired" for 24 hours last winter, we wondered whether Florida football could survive without its two-time national championship coach. One 7-5 season later, we already know the answer.

It may sound cold, what with the ink barely dry on Florida's Wednesday press release announcing Meyer's latest resignation (presumably permanent this time). But if the events of the past 12 months taught us anything, it's that Florida's program is no different from any other: susceptible to staff turnover, talent dropoff and, it now seems, the mindset of its head coach. We wondered last December whether the notoriously high-strung coach could achieve the same success with a more hands-off approach. The answer, apparently, was no.

Urban Meyer Resigns From Florida Gators

Meyer stepped down Wednesday, citing many of the same factors he did the first time. "At this time in my life, I fully grasp the sacrifices my 24/7 profession has demanded of me, and I know it is time to put my focus on my family and life away from the field," Meyer said in the school's release. In just less than a decade as head coach, Meyer proved a masterful recruiter, motivator and offensive innovator, but apparently the one thing he couldn't conquer was his conflict between work and family.

On the heels of an ugly rebuilding season in which his once-prolific offense never stopped sputtering, Meyer was likely facing the prospect of radically overhauling his once stable program. Having already lost his two original coordinators, Dan Mullen and Charlie Strong, over the past two seasons, more staff changes were in the offing. Offensive coordinator Steve Addazio, the man Meyer put in charge of the program during his brief leave of absence last spring, was heading toward the chopping block, and for the first time, the one-time spread option guru would have been looking for outside help to resuscitate what was suddenly an outdated scheme.